My San Francisco Trip

So I'm back and ready to finally start blogging again!  Sorry Cory didn't blog, that was the plan, but, well, he's just not that into blogging!  So now where to start ....... oh the dresses!  We'll start with my best finds in the thrift and vintage stores of San Fran!

We'd visited a number of thrift stores and I was beginning to loos faith in the vintage shopping of SF, until we took a trip to Haight and stumbled upon a great (organized, oh so organized) vintage store called Held Over.

I tried on over 30 dresses and walked away with six!  Vintage is such a hard fit!  So many dresses were too small in the waist, though to large in the hips or shoulders.  I had a friend point out that with the right "foundation" garments, vintage would fit much better.  I also walked away with a skirt, a coat (not vintage, just thifted) and a swim suit!!

beautiful fancy party dresses!

my "new" swimsuit, for beach lounging.

the day dresses.  I plan on making a pattern from the yellow and coral one, it's a fabulous wrap dress!

**************************************

What else did we get up to in San Fran .... oh the food!  Thai, Japanese, Italian, Mexican .... so many tacos!  We spend a couple of nights in, but mostly ate out.  It's well worth it to eat out in San Fran.  I can't get enough tacos, and the Mission is the place to go!  My friend whom I was staying with lived very close to the Mission and we went there almost every day, either for shopping or taquerias!

great deli in Little Italy

oh the splender of tacos, so many tacos were consumed in those five days!

*******************

The day before I left my friend and I decided to do one touristy  thing ...... a Segway tour of Golden Gate Park!  I don't know which was better, the segway riding or the park.  It was a magnificent park, but I have to say riding a segway is something else!  So geeky, but oh so fun!!

segway lesson!

painting and the MOMA

fake hippies on stilts Haight Ashbury area

my friend's neighborhood, Glen Park

the view from my bedroom!

So there you go, my San Fran trip in a nutshell!

Our Trip Part 1: The City

We're Back!  I was going to blog during our little trip, but i lost the cable to connect my camera to my computer and what's a blog post without photos?

We spent two days in Vancouver and it was rather nice.  The weather co-operated and we got out to see a few things.  We decided to bring the dog, as our hotel is pet friendly.  During one of the days she went off to doggy daycare so we could leave the hotel (can't leave a dog alone in a hotel you know!).  In the morning we headed to Dressew ..... possibly the most fantastic place EVER! They are primarily a fabric and notions store, but have a massive selection of costume and halloween decor.  The boys love it for adding hats and masks to their dressup collection.  It's kind of a hodge podge in there, but it's a fun place to just wander around.

there are THREE aisles like this, dress up madness!

the boys running amock with giant clown scissors .... yes we took them home.

some of our loot, fabric for dress up, some skulls and skeletons for my upcoming day of the dead swap, knitting books (99 cents!) and some purse handles!

******************************************************

In the basement of the shop they have isles and isles of buttons (some vintage), sequinned appliques, ribbon and all things stretchy and glittery!  There are also racks and racks of discounted fabrics!  Also purse frames, handles, zippers, quilting rulers etc etc.  I wish I got more photos, but I had my hands full with the kiddies! I am just glad they enjoy going there, so i can browse!

Later on the boys and I found a great little French diner for lunch. Poutine love!!

We also had a visit to the aquarium via the bus, always an adventure.  Poor Dylan was a bit scared of some of the exhibits this time around, so we really couldn't spend as much time as I'd hoped, there.  We did get to go for a dip in the pool before dinner and then had a relaxing evening.

i couldn't get a good photo ... I didn't even try.

There were, of course, places that I wish we'd had time for: Sephora, H&M, Main Street Shopping etc.  But all in all it was a good trip.  No drama, easy days, and all the travel went well!

Part Two: The Country .... tomorrow!

Family Time

This past weekend (an extended one at that!) we had a mini vacation!  Lately we've been spending a bit of time apart as a family so this weekend we had a good ol' time together!  We swam, went for beach walks, built fires, dined out and oh so much more!  The cabin that we go to is like my childhood home, it always feels so good to walk through the door! I love watching my kids and remembering all the good times I had here with my family as a child!

major playdough play!

roasting marshmallows

walking on the first day of spring

a visit from Grandpa

toddler treasures at the beach

*************************************************

thursday i'll be sharing with you, my newest knitted sweater!

More of Scotland

Here are a few more photos from our trip!

Yes, it looks just like a house cat ...... but a bit bigger boned!

Snow Monkeys at the Highland Safari park

My first attempt at a family portrait .... Cory just looks thrilled! Ooops this is a repeat!

My second attempt at a family portrait .... at Eilean Donan Castle

My favorite little alpaca! Oh the yarn I got!!

The Return

I'm back! Did you miss me? The family and I have been in Scotland for the past two weeks, so of course there is lots to catch up on and lots to share!

We are all still out of whack as far as sleeping goes. I've been up since midnight of last night!! Anyways I just wanted to share a few photos of our journey and once we are all settled in back home, I'll share some stories of our adventures!

Happy Halloween All!!

Other Places

Enjoying a warm afternoon, after a cold rainy morning

Out in the rain, while I stayed inside to drink tea and crochet!

This little guy is crazy about slides .... crazy!

Our little Mud Monster, so much mud, his pants were falling down!

Playing the new lunch kit drums

Sometimes they actually play with all that cardboard stuff we've made!

I've had my mind in other places, and now it is actually taking us somewhere! We are planning a trip to Scotland and we couldn't be more thrilled! I've been spending a ridiculous amount of time on my computer, researching and planning routes. We've decided to stay on farms for most of our trip. I think the country air and secluded areas will be just perfect for us!

We are avoiding all big cities and just sticking to the back roads. I can't wait!!

We've been busy doing little things around the house. Cory built and installed some book shelves for the kiddies and also put up a rack for dress up clothes! I think we are finally going to start painting the living room ... okay maybe after we get back!

Jack has started preschool two days a week and loves it. Though I think Dylan loves it more! He runs around, happy to have the house (and all the toys) to himself! I hardly even see him, he so enthralled with all the toys he gets to have, those ones that Jack always takes away!

Alright time to get off the ol' blog site and book us a little Scottish farm cottage!

A First

Jack loves music. He loves all sorts of genres, but old country is his favorite. He especially loves Stompin' Tom Conners.

He is a Canadian performer, who writes and sings songs about Canada. It's pretty rare when a Canadian sings about Canada .... well. So we took our little boys over to the big city and had a good ol' time at the Stompin' Tom show!

Dylan was asleep in the hotel room with my sister and Jack was almost asleep by the end of the show. It was for me an experience I will never forget! I don't have a "To Do Before I Die" List, but if I did, seeing Stompin' Tom would be on it.

Jack was ecstatic, with the show. I hope he remembers the experience many years from now!

Vancouver Vacation

I didn't take very many photos of our recent trip to Vancouver. Something was off about the trip. It was a lot harder than normal. We did have some great times, it was all rather exhausting though. Could have something to do with the insane amount of walking done while STILL wearing my cast!

Dylan spent a great deal of time looking out the window, spying!

Jack spent a great deal of time watching TV ...... the only time he's watched it all summer!

Exploring the globes outside Science World

Korean BBQ!

Examining the seal cubs at the aquarium